Tech Workers Maxed Out Their A.I. Use. Now They're Trying to Minimize It.

After a period of aggressive AI adoption driven by executive pressure to maximize token usage, companies are discovering that unconstrained AI consumption carries real financial costs — Uber reportedly exhausted its annual AI budget within months. The correction now underway reflects a more grounded reckoning with what AI tools actually deliver relative to their expense. This normalization, while unglamorous, is probably healthier than the hype cycle that preceded it.